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A man who took a saw to a mature tree to ‘ring’ a large Acer to kill it was given a conditional warning for the offence.
Horrified residents saw the 52-year-old report his actions to Northern Police – he admitted the crime in an interview.
As well as receiving a conditional warning for the offence, he was ordered to pay £2,000 compensation to North Northamptonshire Council and £500 to a local environmental charity.
PC Mike Ryan from Kettering Neighborhood Policing Team said: “This is a positive outcome for the local community and I would like to thank them for reporting this matter to us.
“There is often a false perception that we don’t respond to incidents of criminal damage, but we do, and I hope that message is loud and clear to potential future offenders.”
The incident happened on May 26, 2022, when concerned residents made a video of the man chopping the mature Acer tree with a handsaw.
Ring bark or girdling causes irreparable damage to vital vessels that move nutrients up from the roots to the leaves. They are protected under the bark of the tree and can be cut to kill a tree.
Councilor Dez Dell (Green, Knockna Seimre) said: “I was very upset to learn of the killing of this mature street tree. they reduce surface water and flooding, remove pollutants from the air and the shade they provide is invaluable, especially as our summers get hotter. For the less nature-minded, they also drive up house prices. “We know trees are so important in the fight against climate change, which is why hundreds have been planted around Kettering over the last few years . However, it will take years before these new trees sequester as much carbon as our mature street trees have for years. It is tragic that all the work done by the community on these tree planting events is being taken away by this wanton destruction. “Unfortunately, this is not the only case I’ve heard of people trying to kill street trees. It’s strange that people can move to a street where there have been trees for a hundred years and then want to destroy them – the trees were there before us and they should be there after us.”
Councilor Harriet Pentland, Northamptonshire Council’s executive member for climate and the green environment, said: “I’m sure many local residents will be as saddened as I was to see the video evidence of someone deliberately killing a mature street tree and on purpose.
“We would like to thank Northamptonshire Police for their positive action in identifying and prosecuting the offender. We hope this will send out a strong message that the council and the police will want to prosecute anyone who deliberately damages and harms the much-loved community trees.”
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